Strip stock processing machine



June 24, 1959 B. E. BARINGER ET AL 3,451,237

STRIP STOCK PROCESSING MACHINE sheet of 11 Filed April 22, 1964 E mmmm Y m Hwa M mAHE m mmm .m VNL l RHR A0E MJB June 24, 1969 B. E. BARINGER ET AL 3,451,237

STRIP STOCK PROCESSING MACHINE Filed April 22, 1964 sheet 2 ef 11 OO V) FIG- 2- JOHN A. HUBER BERLYN E BAKINGER emwgewyw ATTORNEYS l/ f INVENTORS ,f, L0 MARVIN A. HOLE June 24, 1969 B, BAmNGER ET Al. 3,451,237

STRIP sTocK PROCESSING MACHINE Sheet Filed April 22, 1964 INVENTOR5 MARVIN A. HOLE JOHN A. HUBER BY BERLYN E. BARINGER l ATTORNEYS June 24, 1969 B, 5 ARlNGg-:R ET AL 3,451,237

STRIP STOCK PROCESSING MACHINE Filed April 22, 1964 sheet 4 of l11 INVENTORS MARVIN A. HOLE BY JOHN A. HUBER BERLYN E BARINGER A TTORNE YS June 24, 1969 B. E. BARINGER ET Al. 3,451,237

STRIP STOCK PROCESSING MACHINE Filed April 22, 1964 sheet 5 of 11 INVENTORS MARVIN A. HOLE JOHN A. HUBER BY BERLYN E. BARINGER AT TORNE YS June 24, 1959 B. E. BARINGER ET Al. 3,451,237

STRIP STOCK PROCESSING MACHINE Filed April 22, 1964 sheet 6 of 11 /Z /a' INVENTORS MARVIN A. HOLE JOHN A. HUBER F l G. 9. BY BERLYN E- BARINGER gow/@QL Arron/:grs

June 24, 1969 B. E. BARINGER ET AL 3,451,237

STRIPSTOCK PROCESSING MACHINE of' ll Sheet Filed April 22, 1964 INVENTOR5 MARVIN A- HOLE Y JOHN A. HUBER B BERLYN E. BARINGER ATTORNEYS `lune 24, 1969 B, E, BARlNGER ET AL 3,451,237

STRIP STOCK PROCESSING MACHINE Filed April 22, 1964 Sheet 8 Of ll 'IQ w l yy] QD gp' V LL. E

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INVENTORJS MARVIN A. HOLE `JOHN A. HUBER BY BERLYN E. BARINGER l" ATTQRNEYS JUHC 24, 1969 B. E. BARINGER ET AL 3,451,237

STRIP STOCK PROCESSING MACHINE sheet 9 of 11 Filed April 22, 1964 m i Mmmm. s .Q .w1 @E mE n m .u r WAHE o IWAN w SQ WNW. A Awe .\\\H W w M ,f @w A mls? i .l r u. rf n y June Z4, 1969 B. E. BARINGER ET AL 3,451,237

STRIP STOCK PROCESSING MACHINE Filed April 22, 1964 sheet 01911 u Y 40 Z4 /24/ z-w/ n z 1 L50 /Z48 [r Il Il |E 3V z2@ j W z ,f 'v 7 /ZM ZH 7 x 222/ f2 1 VV i f V A nu V S 24 n u w J /ZS/ 2 5 7- K Cm 242-- Q22? 232 *im u .Y I' 24 n 245 25a 253//7/ ,f f] n INVENTOR5 w FIG. I6. MARVIN A. HOLE JOHN A. HUBER BY BERLYN E.BAR}NGEE ATTORNEYS June 24, 1969 Filed April 22, 1964 ,BKUJH OLLS DOWN UP THREAD INVENTORS MAKV! N A. HOL E A. HUBER BY BE/zw/v E. BAR/Gag A TMA/EY;

United States Patent O v STRIP STOCK PROCESSING MACHINE Berlyn E. Baringer and Marvin A. Hole, Livonia, and

John A. Huber, Birmingham, Mich., assignors to Coilfeed Systems, Inc., Detroit, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Filed Apr. 22, 1964, Ser. No. 361,779 Int. Cl. B21c 47 00 U.S. Cl. 72-40 15 Claims ABSTRACT oF THE DISCLOSURE A device for unwinding coiled sheet metal strip stock comprising means to rotatably support theicoil, peeler means operative'to pick up the free end of the coiled strip, and threading means to automatically guide the strip into brushing and straightening means.

This invention relates generally to an apparatus for processing sheet metal strip stock, and more particularly to a novel and improved strip stock processing machine which is adapted to automatically unwind the strip stock from a coil and thread it through a washer and straightener from whence it is conducted to a suitable multiple speed drive means for feeding the strip stock into a sheet metal processing machine.

Heretofore the sheet metal fabricators ability to process large rolls of coiled sheet metal stock was limited by the prior art equipment available to handle the same. In the use of such prior art equipment, the unpeeling of the coiled strip stock and the feeding of the same was a hand operation wherein the press room personnel manually rotated shop-made reels on which heavy coils of strip stock were mounted. Such manually operated equipment limited the size of the strip stock which could be handled, not only in regard to the thickness, but also in regard to the width. For example, with the prior art equipment, it was not possible to manually handle strip stock larger than approximately 1/s" in thickness. Accordingly, in view ofthe foregoing, it is an important object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved sheet metal strip'stock processing apparatus which is adapted to rotatably support large and heavy rolls of strip stock and a peeler means for unpeeling the leading edge of the strip stock by machine means, whereby the strip stock may be unpeeled in a fast, efficient and accurate manner.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved strip stock processing machine which is provided with a novel cone cradle for rotatably supporting a coil of strip stock, and which processing machine is provided with a coil peeler and threading roll assembly disposed in operative relationship with the cone cradle to coact with the cone cradle to unpeel the strip stock and feed the leading edge of the same into either a washing or straightening apparatus or a combination of both in a fast and accurate manner for further processing.

lt is a further object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved strip stock processing machine which is capable of handling all available sizes of strip stock, including stockl of all available thicknesses and widths.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved strip stock processing machine which is provided with a novel and improved threading roll assembly which functions to guide the strip stock into a washer or straightener apparatus and which further functions to remove some of the set or coil curvature in the strip stock before it is fed through the washer or straightener apparatus.

3,451,237 Patented June 24, 1969 It is still another object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved strip stock processing machine which is provided with a hold-down roller having a central notch around the periphery thereof for the reception of the central retainer strap of a coil of strip stock and to allow the retainer strap to be removed without raising the hold-down roll off the coil and losing control of the coil outer wrap.

It is still a further object of the present invention to provide a novel and improved strip stock processing machine which is provided with a cone cradle on which a coil of strip stock is rotatably mounted and in which threading of the coil of strip stock through the machine is performed by a peeler apparatus which is a unit which picks up the loose end of the advancing strip stock and guides it to a set of ingoing pinch rolls. The key components of the peeler apparatus are a pneumatically operated peeler point and two sets of positioning rolls. One set of threading and strip stock end conditioning rolls is mounted directly on the peeler point assembly and the other is mounted adjacent the peeler point. Initial contact with the advancing leading edge of the strip stock as the same is fed off of the coil lis made by a hold-down roll which restrains the outer wrap of the coil from unwinding. The -peeler point which is a at piece of steel with a knife edge is hydraulically elevated to intercept the advancing or leading edge of the strip stock as it is unwrappedfrom the coil. Upon interception of the leading edge of the strip stock, the stock moves over the peeler point and between the positioning rolls. This effects the stock pickup operation and the succeeding stock movement through the washer and straightener portion of the illustrative apparatus is then ready to begin. Before this phase of the feeding takes place, however, it is necessary to remove the curvature from the end of the advancing or leading edge of the strip stock. Otherwise, the strip stock will continue to move in a downward direction after passing over the peeler point. Straightening of the strip stock leading end is accomplished by exerting force hydraulically on the lower peeler roll which is set slightly ahead of the upper peeler roll. The arrangement of this structure is such that a slight upward bend is produced in the leading end of the strip stock. This upward bend enables the strip stock to advance to the ingoing pinch rolls which are in the open position. The ingoing pinch rolls are then closed and the threading rolls and peeler assembly are retracted and released from the strip stock. The strip stock then continues its advance through the brush rolls into the straightening rolls and at this point the brush rolls are tightened on the strip stock by pneumatic cylinders. The outgoing pinch rolls may be closed at any time since the strip stock 4will advance through them whether they are open or closed. Oil and other foreign matter is then removed from the strip stock with a set of brush rolls which rotate in a direction opposite to the travel of the strip stock. As the brush rolls rotate, they are flooded with a washing solution. Straightening of the advancing strip stock is accomplished with a plurality of rolls, each of which may `be backed up by other rolls for maximum support. It will be understood that in some cases these rolls are not backed up. The strip stock is then fed from the washing and straightening apparatus into a further strip stock length feeding machine, or any other suitable apparatus of this type, which further processes the strip stock.

Other objects, features and advantages of this invention will be apparent from the following detailed description, appended claims, and the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary, side elevational view of a coiled strip stock processing apparatus made in accordance with the principles of the present invention, and showing a cone cradle for holding a coil of strip stock, a coil peeling apparatus, and a threading roll apparatus for guiding the strip stock into a washing and straightening apparatus;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged side elevational view of the coil peeler and threading roll structure shown in FIG. l;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, broken, horizontal sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 2, taken along the line 3 3 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary, broken, horizontal sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 2, taken along the line 4 4 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged, fragmentary, broken, horizontal sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 2, taken along the line 5 5 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged, fragmentary, horizontal sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 2, taken along the line 6 6 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary, side elevational view of a modied coil peeler and threading roll apparatus employed in the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary, elevational view of the hydraulic cylinder and rotor assembly structure used with the coil peeler and threading roll embodiments of FIGS. 2 through 7;

FIG. 9 is an enlarged, fragmentary, elevational sectional view of a first part of the structure illustrated in FIG. 7, taken along the line 9 9 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged, fragmentary, elevational sectional view of the second part of the structure illustrated in FIG. 7 taken along the line 9 9 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 1l is an enlarged, fragmentary, broken, horizontal sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 7, taken along the line 11-11 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 12 is an enlarged, broken, elevational sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 7, taken along the line 12 12 thereof, and looking in the vdirection of the arrows;

FIG. 13 is an enlarged, fragmentary, broken, elevational sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 7, taken 'along the line 13 13 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 14 is an enlarged, fragmentary, elevational sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIG. 7, taken along the line 14-14 thereof, and looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIG. 15 is a fragmentary, enlarged, elevational view of the brush roll structure shown in FIG. l;

FIG. 16 is a fragmentary, broken, elevational sectional view of the structure illustrated in FIG. l5, taken along the line 16 16 thereof and looking in the direction of the arrows; and,

FIG. 17 is a schematic control diagram showing the control functions for rotating the brush rolls in the same direction as the strip stock is owing when the brush rolls are open and for automatically reversing the direction of rotation of the brush rolls to brush opposite the direction of strip stock ow when the brush rolls close.

Referring now to the drawings and in particular to FIG. 1, the numeral 10 generally designates a coil of strip stock which is rotatably mounted on a cone cradle generally indicated by numeral 11. The numeral 12 generally designates a peeler and threading roll apparatus which threads and feeds the strip stock 14 into a washer and straightener apparatus generally indicated by the numeral 13.

The cone cradle 11 comprises a pair of similarly constructed cone centers as 15 which are suitably rotatably mounted on a pair of cone housings 16 which are each slidably mounted for inward and outward movement on a separate cone base member of the type generally indicated by the numeral 17. The coil of strip stock 10 is adapted to be moved in position between the pair of cone centers 15 by any suitable means, as for example, by a loading car 18 which is adapted to be supported on suitable standard railroad rails 19. The loading car 18 moves the coil 10 from a storage rack or the like into an operative position between the cone centers 15. The loading car 18 forms no part of this invention and, accordingly, it is not shown in detail and any suitable means may be used to carry out the function of moving a coil of stock 10 into position between the cone centers 15.

The cone centers 15 are adapted to be moved into operative gripping engagement with the coil of strip stock 10 to support the same for an uncoiling operation. Each of the cone centers 15 are provided with a depending nut member 20 which is threadably engaged by the drive screw 21 which carries a chain sprocket 22 on the outer end thereof. The sprocket 22 is adapted to be driven by means of the chain 23 which is driven by a suitable drive sprocket 24 that is connected by a suitable clutch and gear reducing means 25 to the drive motor 26. As shown in FIG. l, one of the cone centers is power driven and is provided with a gear 27 which is driven by the gear 30 which is in turn operatively driven by the torque limiting clutch 28 and the drive chain 29. The gear 27 is suitably mounted on the cone center shaft 15a carried in the cone housing 16. The drive chain 29 is operatively mounted about the drive sprocket 31 which is carried 'on a suitable shaft 32 journalled in the cone housing 16. Carried on the shaft 32 is an enlarged sprocket 33 which is driven by the chain 34. The drive chain 34 is driven -by the drive sprocket 35 which is operatively connected by means of the clutch and gear reduction means, generally indicated by the numeral 36, to the drive motor 37. It will be understood that both cone centers 15, cone housings 16 and cone base members 17 are similarly constructed and they function in the same manner and, accordingly, only one of these structures has been illustrated in FIG. 1. As viewed in FIG. l, the drive motor 37 functions to rotate the coil of strip stock 10 in a counterclockwise direction for unrolling the strip stock.

As shown in FIGS. l and 2, the peeler and threading roll assembly 12 carries a hold-down roll 38 on the front end of a rst frame which extends over the coil 10. As best seen in FIG. 3, the hold-down roll 38 is horizontally disposed with its axis substantially parallel to the axis of rotation of the coil 10 and it may be made from any suitable material. The hold-down roll 38 is provided with a central peripheral notch 39 to permit removal of the central coil retainer strap without raising the hold-down roll off the coil and losing control of the coil outer wrap, when the uncoiling operation is started.

As shown in FIG. 3, the hold-down roll 38 is provided with the journals 40 and 41 which are mounted in suitable bearings in the journal arms 42 and 43 which are xedly connected to the transverse channel or frame member 44. As best seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, the frame which carries the hold-down roll 38 further includes the spaced apart longitudinal frame channels 45 and 46 and the rear transverse frame channel 47, and these frame channels are xedly connected by any suitable means, as by welding.

The aforedescribed hold-down roll frame is pivotally mounted at the rear end thereof on the housing of the washer and straightener apparatus as shown in FIGS. l, 2 and 4. As illustrated in FIG. 4, a pair of support brackets as 48 and 49 are fixedly secured to the front side of the housing 13 by any suitable means, as by welding. Operatively mounted in the support brackets 48 and 49 are the pivot shafts 50 and 51 which carry the frame mounting journals 52 and 53, respectively. As shown in FIG. 2, a bracket 54 is fixed to the rear end of the holddown roll frame member 46 and it is also fixed to the journal member 52. A similar bracket would be connected between the journal 53 and the frame member 45.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the hold-down roll frame further includes a lower pair of spaced apart longitudinally extended frame channels 55 and 56 which are fixedly connected at the rear ends thereof to the journal members 52 and 53. As shown in FIG. 2, the front end of the frame channel 55 is fixedly interconnected with the front end of the frame member 46 by the upwardly sloping channel member 57. The channel member 57 is fixed to the channel members 55 and 46 by any suitable means, as by welding. A similarchannel interconnects the front end of the frame lower member 56 and the frame upper member 45. The hold-down roll frame is adapted to be pivoted upwardly and downwardly so as to raise the holddown roll 38 to the position shown in FIG. 1, .and to lower the same into engagement with the coil by the following described means. As shown in FIGS. l, 2 and 4, a pair of vertical plates 58 and 59 are welded on the opposite sides of the front end of the frame channel member 55. A pivot pin 60 is operatively mounted between the lower ends of the plates 58 and 59. Journalled on the pin 60 is the yoke member 61 which is iixed to the upper end of the fluid cylinder rod 62. As shown in FIG. 1, the cylinder rod 62 is operatively mounted in the fluid cylinder 63 which is pivotally mounted at the lower end thereof by the pin 64 on the bracket 65 which is welded to the front end of the housing 56. The fluid cylinder 63 may be of any suitable type, as for example, a hydraulic iiuid cylinder. As shown in FIG. 4, the hold-down frame member 66 is also supported by a similar fluid cylinder, and the cylinder connection parts have been marked with the same reference numerals.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, the hold-down roll frame also carries an upper threading roll generally indicated by the numeral 67. The threading roll 67 is made from any suitable material as, for example, from hardcned steel. As shown in FIG. 3, the upper threading roll 67 is provided with the journals 68 and 69 which are rotatably mounted in suitable support bearing members 70 and 71, respectively, which are adjustably secured by any suitable means tothe cross frame member 72 as shown in FIG. 2. The cross frame member 72 is suitably supported on the hold-down roll frame by a pair of vertical channel members as 73 which are iixed at each side of the hold-down frame by any suitable means, as by welding. The cross frame member 72 would be xed to the vertical frame member 73 by any suitable means, as by welding.

As shown in FIG. 3, the threading roll journal 69 is provided with a shaft extension which is connected to the stub shaft 74 by means of a suitable coupling 75. The outer end of the stub shaft 74 is rotated in a suitable bearing 76 which is iixed to the frame member 45 by any suitable means. Operatively connected to the outer end of the shaft 74 is the driven sprocket 77 which is drivingly connected by means of the chain 78 with the drive sprocket 79. As shown in FIGS-2 and 3, the drive sprocket 79 is operatively mounted on the outer end of the shaft 80 which is suitably journalled in the bearing member 81 that is fixed on the frame member 45. Operatively mounted on the inner end of the shaft 80 is the driven sprocket 82 that is connected by means of the chain 83 tothe drive sprocket 84. The drive sprocket 84 is connected by means of the torque limiting device 85 to the output shaft 86 of the gear head type electric drive motor'87 that is mounted on the longitudinal frame inember 88. The frame member 88 is fixedly connected to the hold-down roll frame by any suitable means, as by welding.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the hold-down roll 38 is an idler roll and coacts with the driven coil 10 during an uncoiling operation. If the coil 10 is not driven, then the hold-down roll 38 may be driven from the shaft 80, as

shown in FIG. 1, by means of a pair of suitable sprockets and the drive chain 89.

As shown in FIG. 2, the hold-down roll frame is provided with a strip stock guide plate 90 which is fixedly secured, as by welding, to the underside of the traverse frame member 44, and which slopes downwardly and rearwardly and has the rear end thereof fixedly connected by the vertical brace 91 to the hold-down roll frame. The guide plate 90 is mounted between the hold-down roll 38 and the upper threading roll 67. A second guide plate 92 is mounted on the hold-down roll frame 4behind the threading roll 67. The front end of the guide plate 92 is connected to the hold-down roll frame by the bracket 93, and this plate 92 slopes rearwardly and downwardly, and the rear end thereof is also connected to the hold-down frame by means of the bracket 94.

As shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4, the coil processing machine of the present invention is provided with the lower pair of threading rolls 95 and 96 which are laterally offset relative to the upper threading roll 67. As best seen in FIG. 2, the vertical centerline of the lower threading rolls 95 and 96 is disposed in front of the vertical centerline of the driven threading roll 67 when the threading rolls are in contact with the strip stock. As Will be seen hereinafter, the threading rolls are utilized for threading the strip stock from the coil 10 to the ingoing pinch rolls of the washer and straightening device 13. In addition to threading the strip stock, the threading rolls provide a slight upturn in the strip stock as it is pulled from the coil 10. The upper threading roll is adjustable for various thickenesses of stock.

As shown in FIG. 4, the lower threading roll 95 is rotatably mounted on the shaft 97 which is suitably journalled between the support brackets 98 and 99 which are fixed to the transverse threading peeler frame transverse rail 100. The outer end of the transverse rail 100 is fixed to the longitudinal rail 101 that is fixed, as by welding, to the journal member 102. The journal member 102 is suitably journalled on the transverse shaft 103 that is carried by the bracket 104 lixed to the front end of the straightener housing 13. The other lower threading rail 96 is similarly mounted on the shaft 105 carried by the support brackets 106 and 107. The brackets 106 and 107 are fixed to the transverse frame member 108 that is carried by the longitudinal frame member 109. The frame member 109 is tixed, as by welding, to the journal member 110 which is pivotally mounted on the shaft 111 that is carried by the support bracket 112 mounted on the housing 13.

As shown in FIG. 5, the threading peeler frame transverse members 108 and 100 are extended inwardly toward each other and are spaced apart by the transverse plate 114 which is disposed below the threading r0lls`95 and 96 to provide the opening 113 between the frame members 100 and 108 through which is extended the peeler member that is described hereinafter. As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, extended inwardly from the rear sides of the transverse frame members 100 and 108 are the spaced apart parallel longitudinally extended plates 115 and 116 on the inner sides of which are fixed the bearing members 117 and 118, respectively. Rotatably journalled in the lbearing members 117 and 118 is the pivot pin 119 which supports the cylinder rod yoke 120 fixed to the cylinder rod 121. The cylinder rod 121 is operatively mounted in the fluid cylinder 122 which may be a suitable pneumatic or hydraulic fluid cylinder and which is adapted to raise and lower the threading peeler frame which carries the lower threading rolls 95 and 96. As shown in FIG. 1, the lower end of the uid cylinder 122 is pivotally mounted by means of the pivot pin 123 in the housing member 66.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a longitudinally disposed rearwardly movable peeler member, generally indicated by the numeral 124, is mounted on the threading peeler frame assembly. The end of the peeler member 124 which is disposed toward the coil 10 is provided with a downwardly extended bracket 125 through which is mounted the transverse pin 126. The pin 126 is pivotally carried by the yoke member 127 which is fixed to the outer end of the cylinder rod 128 which is operatively mounted in the fluid cylinder 129. As shown in FIG. 5, the inner end of the piston or cylinder 128 is connected in the usual manner to a fluid piston 130. The rear end of the cylinder 129 is provided with the spaced apart fixed mounting brackets 131 and 132 which carry the pivot shaft 133. The ends of the cylinder pivot shaft 133 are journalled in bearing members 134 and 135 that are carried by the frame members 115 and 116. The peeler member 124 is provided with a sharp point 136 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. A cross section view of the peeler member 124 is shown in FIG. 9 and it will be described in detail hereinafter. It will be seen that as the piston 130 moves to the right, as viewed in FIG. 5, the peeler member 124 will be moved to the right, as viewed in FIG. l, so as to pass under the leading end of a strip of material being unwound from the coil 10 and guide said leading end between the threading rolls 67, and 95 and 96.

FIGS. 7 through 14 illustrate a modified threading roll construction in which the upper threading roll is nondriven and the lower threading rolls 95a and 96a are power driven. The parts of the second embodiment which are similar to the parts of the first embodiment of FIGS. 1 through 6 are marked with the same reference numerals followed by the small letter a.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 13, the hold-down roll 38a is nondriven and the bearing mounting members 42a and 43a are fixedly carried on the lower end of the frame extension member 137 which is fixed to the front end of the hold-down roll frame assembly members 44a and 57a. The frame extension member 137 is tubular in construction and is provided with the vertical side walls 138 and 139, as shown in FIG. 13. A horizontal, transversely disposed pivot shaft 140 is mounted in the frame extension member 137 and extends through the walls 138 and 139 and is suitably journalled in the bearing members 141 and 142, which are operatively mounted on the outside of the walls 138 and 139, respectively.

The nondriven upper threading roll 67a is adapted to be carried on the rear end of a frame which is pivoted on the shaft 140. As shown in FIG. 13, a pair of hub members or bracket members 143 and 144 are xedly secured by any suitable means to the opposite ends of the pivot shaft 140. Fixedly connected, as by welding, to the brackets 143 and 144 are a pair of rearwardly extended channel members 145 and 146 which extend rearwardly inside of the frame members 57a. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 12, the rear ends of the channel members 145 and 146 are fixedly connected to the brackets 147 and 148, respectively, in which are journalled the threading roll stub shafts 149 and 150. As shown in FIG. 12, the inner ends of the stub shafts 149 and 150 operatively carry the bearings 151 and 152, respectively, which are journalled in the stepped recesses 153 and 154 formed in the opposite ends of the nondriven threading roll 67a.

The last-described threading roll frame structure is adapted to be pivoted upwardly and downwardly about the pivot shaft 140 by means of the two-stage fluid cylinder assembly, generally indicated by the numerals 155, in FIGS. 7 and 14. As best seen in FIG. 14, the twostage fluid cylinder 155 includes the cylinder member 156 which is enclosed at the upper end thereof by the end cap 157 and at the lower end thereof by the end cap 158. The fluid cylinder 155 is pivotally mounted at the upper end thereof by means of the trunnion pins 159 and 160 which have the inner ends thereof journalled in diametrically opposite recesses in the upper end cylinder cap 157, and the outer ends thereof journalled in the vertical support plates 161 and 162 that are fixed in spaced relation to the frame cross member 163. The frame member 163 is fixedly connected to the frame member 46a as 8 illustrated in FIG. 7. As best seen in FIG. 14, the cylinder end caps 157 and 158 are secured to the cylinder member 156 by the usual tie rods 164.

As shown in FIG. 14, the two-stage fluid cylinder is provided with a first or outer piston 165 which is open at the lower end thereof and closed at the upper end thereof. Formed through the closed upper end of the piston 165 is a central hole 166 which is aligned with a similar hole 167 formed in the cylinder head 157. Slidably mounted through the holes 166 and 167 is the upper reduced end 168 of the cylinder rod 169. A fluid port 170 is formed through the cylinder cap 157 for admitting and exhausting hydraulic fluid or the like, into and out of the upper end of the cylinder 156., so as to move the first piston 165 downwardly. The piston 165 is not attached to the cylinder rod portion 168 but is freely movable relative thereto. The upper outer end of the piston 165 is provided with the annular recess 171 for the reception of the initial fluid under pressure admitted through the port during the operation of the cylinder, as described in detail hereinafter.

As shown in FIG. 14, the piston 165 is provided with the chamber 172 in which is slidably mounted a second or inner piston 173. A retainer ring 174 is operatively mounted in the lower end of the piston chamber 172 to prevent the inner piston 173 from moving out of the outer piston 165. The inner piston 173 is provided with the axial bore 175 which receives a second reduced portion of the cylinder rod 169. The piston 173 is secured to the cylinder rod 169 by means of the nut 176 which is adapted to be seated in the recess 177 formed in the upper end of the piston 173.

The inner and outer pistons 173 and 165 are provided with suitable sealing members. The cylinder rod 169 is also provided with suitable sealing means in the cylinder end caps 157 and 158. As shown in FIG. 14 the upper end of the inner piston 173 is provided with the angular recess 178 which communicates ywith the fluid in the passage 179 formed in the head of the outer piston 165. It will be seen that when fluid under pressure is admitted through the port 170, the outer piston 165 will be moved downwardly and will push the inner piston 173 downwardly to carry the cylinder rod 169 downwardly. When the inlet passage 179 has been moved downwardly to the point where it is aligned with the fluid inlet passage 180 formed in the cylinder mem-ber 156, fluid under pressure will be admitted into the passage 179 and continued downward movement of the cylinder rod 169 will be effected by the downward movement of the inner piston 173 relative to the outer piston 165. The piston 173 will move downwardly until it engages the retainer ring 174. A fluid inlet port 181 is formed through the lower cylinder end cap 158 to provide for admittance of fluid under pressure to move the pistons 173 and 165 upwardly. IIt will be understood that when the pistons are being moved upwardly, fluid will be exhausted first through the port 180 and then through the port 170 until the pistons are again in the solid line position shown in FIG. 14. This exhausting sequence may be provided by any suitable means, as by a suitable time delay action at the exhaust port of the fluid flow control valve that feeds port 180.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 14, a yoke member 182 is mounted on the lower end of the cylinder rod 169 and is secured to the bracket 183 by means of the pivot pin 184. The bracket 1'83 is fixedly secured by any suitable means, as by welding, to the transverse frame member 185 which is interconnected, as by welding, to the pair of spaced apart longitudinal threading roll frame members 145 and 146. It will be seen that when the fluid cylinder 155 is operated so as to move the bracket plate 183 upwardly and downwardly, the threading roll 67a 'will be carried upwardly and downwardly in accordance with the movement of the cylinder rod 169.

The lower threading rolls of the second embodiment are indicated in FIG. 9 by the numerals 95a and 96a and they are power driven by the following describe-d structure. As shown in FIG. 8, a suitable electric drive motor 186 is mounted in the housing 56 and is connected by means of the coupling 187 to a suitable speed reducer apparatus 188. The outputshaft of the speed reducer apparatus 188 is provided with the drive sprocket 189 which drives the chain 190. The chain 190 is adapted to be operatively engaged with the sprocket 191 shown in FIG. 11 and 1which is rotatably mounted on the shaft 111a. The shaft 111m is provided fwith an extension which is carried in the journal members 192 and 193 that are fixed to the housing 13 by means of the bracket arms 194 and 195. A double-toothed drive sprocket 196 is xedly connected to the driven sprocket 191. The sprocket 196 is connected by means of the chain 197 to the driven sprocket 198 which is fixed on the outer end of the idler shaft 199'. As shown in FIG. 10, the idler shaft 199 extends across the peeler threading frame lower assembly and is suitably journalled in the bearing members 200 and 201, as shown in FIGS. l ,and 9, respectively. As shown in FIG. l0, a drive sprocket 202 is xed to the idler shaft `199 and is interconnected by means of the drive chain 203 to the driven sprocket 204 xedly connected to the lower threading roll 96a. As shown in FIG. 9, a second drive sprocket 205 is suitably fixed to the other end of the idler shaft 199 and is connected by means of the drive chain 206 to the dri'ven sprocket 207 which is fixedly connected to the lower threading roll 95a. It is thus seen that in the second embodiment of FIGS. 7 through 14, the upper threading roll is an adjustable idler roll and the lower threading rolls are power driven rolls.

FIG. 9 illustrates the cross section structure of a typical peeler member. The numeral 208 illustrates a longitudin-ally disposed elongated I-beam which is adapted for slidable movement between the spaced apart longitudinal channel members 209 and 210 in the lower peeler threader frame assembly. The lower flange of the I-beam 208 is slidably mounted against the lower side of the channels 209 and 210. The upper flange of the I-beam 208` is slidably mounted on the upper surface of a plate 211 and the I-beam web is disposed in the longitudinal slot 212 formed in the plate 211. Fixedly mounted on the upper flange of the l-beam 208 is an elongated plate 213 which is pointed at the front end thereof and is illustrated in FIG. 1 by the numeral .136.

As shown in FIG. 11, the lower threading roll frame assembly plate 211 carries a vertical cross or transverse plate 214 to which is mounte-d the pivot shaft brackets 102er and l10n. The rear end of the peeler cylinder 129a is hingedly connected by means of the bracket 215 which is fixed to the frame member 214 and the shaft 4133:1 and the bracket members 13211 and 131a.

As shown in FIGS. l, 15 and 16, the coilfeed apparatus of the present invention is provided with la pair of brush rolls 216 and 217 .which are operatively mounted for movement between two positions, namely an open position and a closed position. As shown in FIG. 16, the upper brush roll 216 is ixedly secured on ya suitable shaft having the one end 218 rotatably mounted in the bearing member 219 carried in the vertical carrier arm 220. The other end of the brush roll shaft 221 is suitably rotatably mounted in the bearing 222 carried in a second laterally spaced part, vertically disposed carrier arm 223. The lower brush roll 217 is spaced apart downwardly from the upper roll 216 and is similarly journalled in the arms 220 and 223. As shown in FIG. 16, the lower brush roll 217 is carried on a shaft having one end thereof, as 224, journalled in the bearing 225 mounted in the lower end of the arm 220. The other shaft end 226 of the brush roll shaft forV the lower brush roll 217 is similarly rotatably mounted in the bearing 227 in the lower end of the arm 223.

The arms 220 and 223 are adapted to be rockably mounted. As shown in FIG. 16, the arm 220 is provided with the bore 228 in a position centrally disposed between the shafts 218 and 224. The bore 228 receives the inner end of the journal 229 for rock-ably supporting the arm 220 thereon. The journal member 229 is carried in the mounting bracket 230 which is fixedly mounted in the intermediate housing wall 231 of the housing 13. The other arm 223 is provided with a similar bore 232 which receives the inner end of the journal member 233 that is carried in the mounting bracket 234 fixed in the intermediate housing wall 235.

The brush roll carrier arms 220 and 223 are adapted to be rotated between the closed position shown in FIG. 1, wherein the vertical centerline joining the axes of the brush rolls is disposed forwardly, and the open position which is shown in solid lines in FIG. 15 wherein the vertical axis of the brush rolls is disposed vertically. As shown in FIGS. l5 and 16, the upper end of the brush carrier arm 220 is pivotally connected by means of the pivot pin 236 to the yoke member 237 which is also connected to the cylinder rod 238. The cylinder rod 238 is operatively mounted in the usual manner in the fluid cylinder 239. The upper end of the fluid cylinder 239 is hingedly connected by means of the pin 240 to the bracket 241 that is fixed to the housing 13. As shown in FIG. 16, the other brush roll carrier arm 223 is also yadapted to be rocked by a similar fluid cylinder 239.

The brush rolls 216 and 217 are adapted to be power driven by the following described structure. An idler shaft 242 is rotatably mounted in the bore 243 of the journal member 229 by means of the bearing members 244 and 245. Fixedly connected to the outer end of the shaft 242 is a driven sprocket 246 which is driven by the chain 247. The chain 247 is driven by the sprocket 248 mounted on the output shaft 249 of a reversible rotary fluid motor 250. The motor 250 may be any suitable rotary motor, as for example, a rotary fluid or electric motor. It will also be understood that any other suitable type of power means may be used to reverse the brush rolls.

As shown in FIG. 16, a drive gear 251 is fixedly connected to the inner end of the shaft 242 and is meshably engaged with the driven gear 252 mounted on the lower -brush roll shaft 224. Fixedly mounted on the other end 226 of the shaft of the lower brush roll 217 is al drive gear 253 which is meshably engaged with a driven gear 254 fixed on the upper brush roll shaft 221. It will be seen that when the fluid motor 250 is rotated, the aforedescri'bed sprocket, chain, and gear means will be actuated to drive the brush rolls 216 and 217 in opposite directions.

As shown in FIG. 1, the straightening means 13 is provided with a pair of ingoing pinch rolls 255 and 256 and a pair of outgoing pinch rolls 257 and 258. These pinch rolls are conventional structures, and the details of the same are not shown. The upper pinch rolls 256 and 258 are adapted to be moved upwardly and downwardly in a conventional manner by means of the fluid-cylinders 259 and 260. It will be seen that the brush rolls 216 and 217 are disposed inwardly of the ingoing pinch rolls 255 and 256.

As shown in FIG. 1, the washer and straightener apparatus 13 is further provided with a set of straightener rolls. The straightener rolls may be of any suitable conventional type and includes a group of four rolls 261 which are rollably mounted so as to engage the lower side of the strip material 14 as itis passed through the straight ener and washer apparatus 13. A set of three upper straightener rolls 262 are mounted in a bank to coact with the four lower rollers 261. The upper rollers 262 are adapted to be adjustable by means of the powered Worm gear mechanism 263 which is of a conventional construction. As shown in FIG. 1, the apparatus of the present invention may be provided with a pair of vertical guide plates as 264 disposed on each side of the patch of the strip material 14 and adapted to be adjustable inwardly and outwardly by a suitable lead screw 265 and the hand wheel 266.

The aforedescribed cone cradle 11, peeler and threading roll assembly and washer and straightener apparatus, 12 and 13, respectively, are adapted to be controlled, individually and collectively, by means of electrical and hydraulic controls such as would be used by those skilled in the art. These controls are within the realm of selection by the skilled mechanic and no invention is obtained by using any of the variety of forms thereof which may be employed to accomplish the desired function in the proper sequence in any desired time relation. Accordingly, no detailed hydraulic or electrical control circuits have been shown with the exception of the fragmentary schematic illustration of FIG. 17 which refers to the control of the brush rolls 216 and 217.

In operation, the coil would be transferred from a storage rack to the cone cradle and the controls for the apparatus of the present invention would be operated so as to operate the tiuid cylinder 63 to raise the hold-down roll 38 and the upper threading roll 67. The cylinders 122 and 129 would be in the retracted position so as to lower the threading and peeler assembly frame to the down position shown in FIG. 1 and to retract the peeler member 124. The pinch roll cylinders 259 and 260 are operated so as to open the ingoing and outgoing pinch rolls and the brush roll cylinders 239 are operated so as to move the brush rolls to the vertical or threading position.

As shown in FIG. 17, a selector switch 267 is provided for controlling the operation of the brush rolls 216 and 217. The brush roll selector switch 267 is movable between the three positions down, up and thread, as shown in FIG. 17. The normal working position of the brush-rolls is shown in FIG. 1, and the selector switch 267 would be in the down position at this time, and the brushes would be rotating against the direction of iiow of the strip stock material through the brush rolls. When the selector switch 267 is in the up position, the brush rolls 216 and 217 are disposed in the vertical position. A novel feature of the control circuit of FIG. 17 is that the brush rolls stop rotating when the brush rolls are moved to the vertical position. However, when the selector switch 267 is turned to the thread position, the brush rolls stay in the vertical position but they then rotate in al forward direction, that is, in the direction of flow of the strip stock material through the brush rolls. This action is advantageous since it helps the threading operation of the strip stock material 14 through the brush rolls.

When the selector switch 267 is in the down position, the relays CR-l and CR-2 are de-energized. When the threading of the strip stock material 14 through the brush rolls is initiated, the selector switch 267 is turned to the thread position and the relay contacts CR-1-3 and CR-1-4 open, and the relay contact CR-l-l and CR-1-2 close. This operation prevents the brush rolls from turning in a reverse direction during the threading operation. -At the same time, the solenoid valve 268 is operated to move the control valve 269 to a position to reverse the direction of rotation of the fluid drive motor 250 to reverse the direction of rotation of the brush rolls 216 and 217.

The coil 10 is unrolled either by the use of the cone cradle drive motor or the power driven type of hold-down roll 38 shown in FIG. 1. The fluid cylinders 63 are actuated to bring the hold-down roll 38 into engagement with the coil 10 and the lower threading roll and peeler frame assembly is raised by means of the tiuid cylinder 122. The operator then controls the fluid cylinder 129 so as to move the peeler member 124 outwardly and under the leading end of the unrolling strip stock 14 so as to guide it over the lower threading rolls 95 and 96 and into the ingoing pinch rolls 255 and 256. After the leading edge of the strip material 14 has passed between the threading roll 67 and rolls 95 and 96, the fluid cylinder 122 is operated to bring the threading rolls together and create a 12 pressure on a strip material 14 to aid in straightening out the strip stock.

The hold-down roll and upper threading roll structure of the modilication of FIGS. 7 through 14 is operated in substantially the same manner. When the threading operation is first initiated the adjustable threading roll 67a will be elevated to its uppermost position and then 10W- ered accordingly after the leading edge of the strip material has passed underneath the roll 67a. The adjustable upper threading roll 67a also functions to remove the initial set in the leading edge of the strip material 14.

The strip material 14 is passed through the brush rolls 216 and 217 into the straightening rolls 261 and 262 and then through the outgoing pinch rolls 257 and 258. It will be understood that once the leading end of the strip stock material 14 passes through the ingoing pinch rolls 255 and 256 that the brush rolls 216 and 217 and the ingoing pinch rolls 255 and 256 are moved downward into contact with the strip stock material to proceed to pull the material through the brush rolls, the straightening rolls 261 and 262 and the outgoing pinch rolls 257 and 258. The outgoing pinch rolls 257 and 258 maybe closed at any time since the strip stock material will proceed through them whether they are open or closed. After the ingoing pinch rolls 255 and 256 have engaged the strip stock material, the threading rolls and hold-down rolls and peeler point assembly is released. When the strip stock material has been threaded through the washing and straightening apparatus, the selector switch 267 is moved to the down position and the relay contacts CR-2-1 and CR-2-2 Will ybe closed and the solenoid 270 will be operated to move the valve 269 to a position to reverse the iiow of fluid to the fluid motor 250, whereby the brush rolls 216 and 217 will be reversed so as to rotate in a direction opposite the tiow of material through the rolls.

All dirt and foreign matter is removed from the strip material 14 as' it passes through the washer and straightener mechanism 13 in a conventional manner and using conventional washing solution. The stock is also straightened by the straightening rolls in a conventional manner. As the stock leaves the left end of the washer and straightener mechanism 13, as viewed in FIG. 1, it is fed into a suitable processing machine for further feeding into a punch press or the like.

While it will be apparent that the preferred embodiments of the invention herein disclosed are well calculated to fulll the objects above stated, it will be appreciated that the invention is susceptible to modification, variation and change without departing from the proper scope or fair meaning of the subjoined claims.

What we claim is:

1. In a strip stock processing machine, the combination comprising: means for rotatably supporting a coil of strip stock for uncoiling the same; a swingably mounted rst frame adjacent said coil supporting means and movable between raised and lowered positions; a hold-down roll operatively mounted on said first frame; power means operatively connected to said first frame for raising said rst frame to move the hold-down roll to an inoperative position disengaged from said coil of strip stock, and to move said rst frame downwardly and said hold-down roll into operative engagement with said coil, of strip stock; and, said hold-down roll being provided with a peripheral groove to permit a coil retainer strap to be removed from the coil when the hold-down roll is engaged with the coil.

2. In a strip stock processing machine, the combination comprising: means for rotatably supporting a coil of strip stock for uncoiling the same; a swingably mounted first frame adjacent said coil supporting means and movable between raised and lowered position; a hold-down roll operatively mounted on said rst frame; power means operatively connected to said first frame for raising said first frame to move the hold-down roll to an inoperative position disengaged from said coil of strip stock, and to move said first frame downwardly and said hold-down roll into operative engagement with said coil of strip stock; a swingably mounted second frame adjacent said coil supporting means and movable between an inoperative lowered position and an operative raised position; an upper strip stock threading roll means operatively mounted on said first frame and a lower strip stock threading roll means operatively mounted on said second frame; and, power means operatively connected to said second frame for raising and lowering the same between said operative and inoperative positions.

3. A strip stock processing machine as defined in claim 2, including: a strip stock peeler means movably mounted on said second frame, and, power means for moving said peeler means between a retracted inoperative position and an advanced operative position to engage the leading end of an unwinding coil, and to guide the same between said lower and upper threading roll means.

4. A strip stock processing machine as defined in claim 2, wherein: said upper threading roll means comprises an idler roll and said lower threading roll comprises a power driven roll.

5. A strip stock processing machine as define in claim 2, wherein: said lower threading roll means comprises an idler roll and said upper threading roll comprises a power driven roll.

`6. A strip stock processing machine as dened in claim 5, wherein: said upper threading roll is movably mounted on said rst frame.

7. A strip stock processing machine as dened in claim 6, wherein: said upper threading roll is movable by means of a dual piston uid cylinder means.

y8. A strip stock processing machine as defined in claim 6, including: a brush roll means having a pair of brush rolls adapted to be selectively rotated in the direction of ow of the strip stock or against the direction of flow of strip stock.

9. A strip stock processing machine as defined in claim 7, wherein: said dual piston fluid cylinder means includes a cylinder member; an outer piston slidably mounted in said cylinder member; an inner piston slidably mounted in said outer piston; a cylinder rod having one end thereof connected to said inner piston and the other end thereof extended out of the cylinder member and hingedly connected to said upper threading roll; and, port means in said cylinder member and said outer piston for successively admitting fluid into said cylinder member and said outer piston for moving both of said pistons simultaneously in said cylinder member and then successively moving the inner piston axially in said outer piston.

10. A strip stock processing machine as defined in claim 4, wherein: said upper threading roll is movably mounted on said first frame.

11. A strip stock processing machine as defined in claim 2, wherein: said upper strip stock threading roll means is adjustably mounted on said irst frame.

12. A strip stock processing machine as defined in claim 10, wherein: said upper threading roll is movable by a iluid cylinder means.

13. A strip stock processing machine as defined in claim 10, wherein: said upper threading roll is movable by means of a dual piston -uid cylinder means.

14. A fluid cylinder means comprising: a cylinder member; an outer piston slidably mounted in said cylinder member; an inner piston slidably mounted in said outer piston; a cylinder rod having one end thereof connected to said inner piston and the other end thereof extended out of the cylinder member; and, port means in said cylinder member and said outer piston for successively admitting lluid into said cylinder member and said outer piston for moving both of said pistons simultaneously in said cylinder member and then successively moving the inner piston axially in .said outer piston.

15. In a strip stock processing apparatus the combination including: a brush roll means having a pair of brush rolls adapted to be selectively rotated in the direction of flow of the strip stock or against the direction of flo-w of strip stock; and, means for moving the brush rolls to a rst position when the bruhs rolls are rotated in the direction of flow of the strip stock and to a second position when the brush rolls are rotated against the direction of ow of the strip stock.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 998,448 7/1911 Bachman et al. 72-40 2,280,564 4/ 1942 Wilson 72-183 2,318,432 5/ 1943 Stanier et al. 72-40 2,508,977 5/1950 Todd 242-78l6 3,226,050 12/1965 Engel 242-78.8 3,254,680 6/1966y Caveney et al. 140-123.6 3,140,526 7/ 1964 Tlamicha 51-74 3,266,280 8/1966 Wiig 72-134 CHARLES W. LANHAM, Primary Examiner.

LOWELL A. LARSON, Assistant Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 

